Chapter 125: What You Trampled On / The Path You Have Tread (13)

Numerous colors converge and stab into Yuan Li.

Chyararak!

Yuan Li's arms momentarily transform into blood-colored ghost hands.

The blood-colored ghost hands grab and try to block my Colorless Glass Sword.

Kwaduduk!

"It's over."

Kugugugugu!

Unable to withstand my power, Yuan Li falls and crashes onto the ground of Serving Command Palace.

Spiderweb-like cracks spread out below him.

"Die!"

I plunge down on him, mobilizing all the power of the Colorless Glass Sword and the Formless Sword.

Kwaaaaang!

Just then, when his death seems imminent.

Kukguk, Kuguguk!

'This is…'

Cultivation begins to return

The spiritual power at the Qi Building stage in my entire body returns to the Core Formation level.

The numerous Core Formation cultivators trapped around also begin to regain their cultivation.

And that means.

'The restraint of Serving Command Palace...!'

Kuguguguk!

Yuan Li, once again exuding the power of a Nascent Soul Old monster, pushes away my sword with the hand that grabbed the Colorless Glass Sword.

'Why...!? It's not time yet...!?'

I grit my teeth and firmly press down on the sword with all my might.

It doesn't make sense.

Why?

Kwaang!

And then.

Eventually, the Colorless Glass Sword is flung away.

Yuan Li stands up.

Kugugugu!

[Haah….]

He gasps for breath.

[I acknowledge it. After hundreds of years, I have experienced a true life-and-death battle. That was really a close call.]

He turns his head to one side.

There, Byeok Cheon-gi, the head of the Byeok Clan, is gasping for breath, apparently having completed some action.

"Using a secret technique found in the ruins of the Jo Clan, I barely managed to release the restraint earlier"

[Yes. Your contribution is significant. However... the sin committed by your clan's child is also great.]

"Please, have mercy…."

Ddaakk!

With a flick of Yuan Li's finger,

Byeok Cheon-gi and the other traitors all collapse on their spots, screaming.

"Kuaaaaghk!"

"Aaaaarghh!"

"Euaaaghk!"

[Except for the one fool from the Byeok Clan, to think that all I have are those who just stare blankly, even when their master is in danger…. All of them are useless. Even the fool from the Byeok Clan only cleaned up his own mess, so it's all the same.]

Giiiiing!

I frown at the familiar energy I feel from the traitors' upper dantians.

It's the energy of the Five Elements Blood Curse Banner.

'He implanted it 200 years ago, so they couldn't resist.'

Ddaakk!

Yuan Li flicks his finger again, and the screams subside.

[Enough. Anyway, as I said before, we'll deal with the reward distribution later. Now there's something more important.]

He looks at me.

[The ones who pushed me to this point… Let's start by dealing with these guys.]

I look back at him and smirk.

"Funny. How about you check your own condition first?"

While Yuan Li has indeed recovered his Nascent Soul cultivation, his momentum is not the same as before.

He exhausted quite a bit of energy fighting me.

The situation is quite different from earlier when he fully demonstrated the power of a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

His defensive dharma treasure was destroyed in the Heavenly Tribulation.

His summons, the bizarre ghost beast and the blood cloud ghost kings, fell in Serving Command Palace.

What remains are his natal dharma treasures: the seventeen bone daggers, the blood-colored leaf fan, the blood-colored spear, and the crystal skull staff.

His strength is steadily decreasing.

Kuguguguk!

Additionally, the cultivators who were restricted to Qi Building are now struggling to free themselves from the black iron chains of the Jinlu Clan's dharma treasure.

Although the traitors make up a significant force, in terms of numbers alone, we are far superior.

Moreover, it's evident that Yuan Li hasn't yet overcome the aftereffects of the curse and the heavenly lightning.

"Do you really think you can defeat us?"

To my menacing question, Yuan Li pauses, then begins to laugh.

[Huhu, a splendid warrior. Unyielding no matter how many times beaten... Moreover, someone who faced Heavenly Tribulations upon reaching Core Formation and could exhibit Core Formation stage power within Serving Command Palace's restraint…]

He reaches out his hand towards me.

[You, will you not become my blood slave? Though I say blood slave, I'll treat you like a disciple.]

I silently take my stance in response.

[Tsk, foolish.]

He spreads his arms.

I grip my sword and gather energy.

Flash!

No need for words.

I charge and thrust the Formless Sword straight at him.

Suddenly, in his hand is the blood-colored leaf fan.

[Cry, Summoning Wind Blood Fan.]

Kwaaaaa!

A bloody wind blows, pushing me back.

As soon as I touch the blood wind, I feel the blood in my entire body boiling.

Kwaaaang!

Eventually, unable to withstand it, I'm pushed back and blown away.

Whether he does this or that.

He has regained the power of a Nascent Soul.

But I'm not particularly discouraged.

'I can win!'

His power is evidently weaker than when I first faced him.

If it's only this much, I can surely take him down!

"Everyone! This old monster is definitely weaker than before! If we join forces, we can surely win!!"

Kwachang, Kwachangchang!

Cheongmun Jung-jin and numerous Core Formation cultivators, whose powers have returned, begin to rise from their spots.

"O-Orabeoni…!"

"Jinlu Yeon-cheon!!!!! How dare you!!!"

"Ah, no!"

The tide begins to turn.

Byeok Cheon-gi released Serving Command Palace's restraint to save Yuan Li, but it inadvertently allowed our allied forces to regain their strength.

I take out the communication device to contact Song Jin and Seo Ran who are waiting.

"It's almost over. You can come now."

Wiiiing!

Before the battle, a ghost that Song Jin attached to me when he visited Serving Command Palace a few years ago woke up inside my pocket and peeked out.

The tiny ghost looks around the situation, likely transmitting the battlefield to the two.

'I've contacted them, now all that's left is….'

Just to press him and wait!

Just then.

[Gather power, Summoning Wind Blood Fan.]

Giiiiing!

Yuan Li floats his blood-colored leaf fan in the air.

His natal dharma treasure rises into the air, beginning to gather energy.

And then.

"Ah, no! Orabeoni, let me go for a moment! Please!"

Jinlu Yeon-cheon and a few of the traitors begin to struggle.

Yuan Li looks down at them and speaks.

[Contrary to the initial proposal, you failed to perfectly suppress them. Thus, there's no need to keep my promise to spare them, correct…?]

Jinlu Yeon-cheon and some traitors scream as if crying out.

"Lord Bloodwood! Please show mercy! Please do not massacre the Cheongmun Clan!"

"Lord Bloodwood! We did our best, please spare these tribes…!"

[Wasn't that the original agreement? If you had suppressed them properly beforehand, this wouldn't be necessary. Now it's too late.]

And then.

Swoosh!

Something crimson flies from the direction of the black castle.

Shiver, shiver!

My rational mind screams to rush at Yuan Li and cut off his head.

But my intuition as a martial artist holds me back.

I will die.

If I step forward now, I will meet a miserable death.

Kwaaang!

What flew from the black castle lands right next to Yuan Li.

It is...

A beautiful person, confusing in gender, wearing the same clothes as Yuan Li.

This person, whether male or female, has ebony-black hair and a corpse-pale, smooth skin.

Seeing that figure, I shudder in recognition.

'That's….'

In the last moments of my previous life.

Yuan Li at that time was neither white-haired nor had a small stature and wrinkled skin like the current Yuan Li.

Certainly, Yuan Li back then...

Had [that body]!

[Regardless, you all fought well. To think you made me bring out my hidden Blood Body.]

Kugugugugu!

The young Yuan Li, referred to as the 'Blood Body', intensifies his aura.

Zzzz, zzzz...

'Insane...'

This person too possesses the power of a completed early Nascent Soul stage.

And.

Woo-wooong!

Yuan Li's original body.

From the Baihui point of his main body, a tiny baby emerges.

It's the grotesque baby I saw before, covered in numerous hands, eyes, and mouths.

The original body's Nascent Soul!

The baby, laughing eerily, enters into the Baihui point of Yuan Li's Blood Body next to him.

And then.

Sssssss...

Yuan Li's Blood Body is enveloped in the same pitch-black darkness as Yuan Li's original body.

A translucent mask, akin to dark fog, covers his face.

Yuan Li finally reverts to the same form I had seen in my past life.

[Hoo, good.]

Kwaduk!

The newly formed body grabs the head of its previous old body.

And then.

Chururururuk!

He absorbs his old body.

His old body turns into a mist of blood and is absorbed into his hand.

Kugugugugu!

His cultivation, which was at the completed early Nascent Soul stage, surges to the completed mid Nascent Soul stage again.

[Surprised by my Blood Body? After the Heavenly Being seniors ascended, I created this new body to rule this world for another thousand years. Not only did I extend its life with pure Long Source True Power for 200 years... I also mastered my core methods, the Blood Demon Suppressing Sea Light and Blood Chain Binding Forest to their extremes. Furthermore...]

He smiles, his mouth almost tearing apart, reaching out to the dharma treasure floating in the air.

[For 200 years, I even mastered the method stolen from the Sea Dragon King. See clearly the power drawn by the newly refined dharma treasure and the Sea Dragon King's method over these 200 years…!!]

Kugugugugu!

Centered on Yuan Li, a whirlwind of blood begins to form.

He grabs the blood-colored leaf fan he has been gathering power with and swings it fiercely.

Kwagwagwagwak!

Yuan Li's proclamation echoes throughout Serving Command Palace.

[Behold the power of Summoning Wind, True Blood Transformation!]

Kugugugugu!

A bloody dragon rises, covering the first floor of Serving Command Palace.

I clench my teeth, cutting through the bloody wind with my Formless Sword, holding my ground.

But others can't hold out as easily, as many Core Formation cultivators are swept away by the wind.

Kwagwagwagwa!

A bloody windstorm hits the entire first floor of Serving Command Palace.

Yuan Li's attack sweeps the area with a bloody dragon.

I continue to clench my teeth and withstand the strike, and after some time passes,

Whooooo...

When the wind subsides,

What remains in the hall are only a few exceptionally strong cultivators among the Clan heads or Core Formation elders.

I look around.

The figure of Byeok Mun-seong is nowhere to be seen.

Kugugugugu...

Where Yuan Li's bloody wind struck, clouds of blood began to rise.

The blood clouds flow into Yuan Li.

[Indeed, it's the best. The compatibility of Summoning Wind, True Blood Transformation and Blood Demon Suppressing Sea Light...]

Wuduk, wuduk!

On Yuan Li's forehead, small blood-colored antlers, like a deer's, begin to sprout.

Budeuk...

Somewhere, the sound of teeth grinding is heard.

Cheongmun Jung-jin is holding the split corpse of Jinlu Yeon-cheon.

"Why... even to your own allies, why kill them so brutally...?"

[I'm simply distinguishing between those who serve me with true loyalty and those with other motives.]

He continues.

[I selectively killed only those who impudently begged to spare the losers. Whether to kill or spare the defeated is the choice of the master, me. Such audacious ones.]

He mocks us.

[Yes. You must have felt good from hiding behind a woman and receiving protection huh. You only spout nonsense. In this world, there's no such thing as being on the same side.]

Kiiiiing!

Familiar formation flags emerge from his storage artifact.

Red formation flags fly across Serving Command Palace, setting up formations.

Flash!

And then.

The first floor of Serving Command Palace collapses, merging with the second floor.

He continues.

[Isn't it true that only those who become cruel and merciless can survive in the world of cultivators? When the Sea Dragon King, after I slayed his own kin, stood before me and even offered to spare my life in exchange for receiving three of his blows, I inwardly mocked him. Such foolishness to show mercy even to an enemy. What a weak mentality!]

Kugugugugu!

His formation continues to expand into the void, collapsing the layers of Serving Command Palace.

I grit my teeth and try to approach him, but the powerful blood wind he created is too difficult to penetrate.

An even stronger blood wind surges around Yuan Li.

[I endured his three blows and inflicted a slight wound on the Sea Dragon King, stealing a drop of his blood essence. Not only that, I succeeded in stealing the Sea Dragon Tribe's method, Summoning Wind, True Blood Transformation! I have risen to this point by exploiting the Sea Dragon King's mercy, the sympathy of the powerful, the awe and fear of the weak, and the blood and lives of the foolish!]

Kuguguguk!

Yuan Li's consciousness domain compresses, resembling the form of a Sea Dragon.

Simultaneously, an aura akin to that of a Sea Dragon emanates from him.

Kwagwang!

Before long, almost all the floors of Serving Command Palace have collapsed, leaving only the 7th floor.

[I have refined this Blood Body and ascended to this position by exploiting, stealing, and seizing! Isn't seizing and dominating the truth of the world? In this world, there are only those who seize and conquer and those who are conquered because they seize less!]

He laughs maniacally, raising the blood-colored leaf fan again.

Chajajak!

His formation flags pierce the ceiling of the last floor, the 7th floor of Serving Command Palace.

If it collapses, the Serving Command Seal will appear.

[Die, you fools!]

And then.

Kiiiiing!

Outside Serving Command Palace.

In the empty void, a ghostly mist begins to form.

Through the communication device, a familiar voice is heard.

[I apologize, it took some time to prepare the teleportation array of the Nether Crossing Ship. After discussing with Ran, we decided to send him instead of me.]

Kugugugugu!

From inside the ghostly mist, a pale hand reaches out.

A somber, ghostly aura flows from the void.

[He saw the situation and thought he could handle it. Take good care of Ran.]

With that, Song Jin turns off the communication device.

Phwak!

Immediately afterwards.

A familiar figure emerges from the ghostly mist.

Half-human, half-dragon.

No longer wearing the blue robe of the Sea Dragon Tribe, but the black robe characteristic of Black Ghost Valley.

Seo Ran, who has ascended to mid-stage Core Formation in the past 200 years, bow to us.

"Greetings, seniors. It's been a while, Senior Seo. And your reputation precedes you, Senior Yuan Li."

Yuan Li halts his attack with the blood-colored leaf fan and, seeing Seo Ran, emits a bloody glow from his eyes.

[Ho… you are…!]

"A half-blood of the Sea Dragon Tribe and a disciple of Black Ghost Valley. I am Seo Ran."

[Ha, hahaha! Hahahaha!]

Yuan Li bursts into laughter.

[So, the lineage of the Sea Dragon King's blood that I refined with Summoning Wind, True Blood Transformation speaks. Are you not a descendant of the king?]

"I am embarrassed but yes, I am a descendant of the king."

[Good, good. How about you? Would you like to become my disciple?]

Yuan Li looks at Seo Ran, licking his lips.

Seo Ran looks back at him for a moment and then speaks.

"Before anything, there are three major misconceptions you have, Senior Yuan, that I'd like to address."

[Oh, do tell.]

"First, I already have a master, so I cannot become your disciple."

Seo Ran raises one finger.

"Second, I have come to dislike someone who sacrifices others without a second thought, like you. Today, I am here to help Senior Seo kill you."

Yuan Li raises the blood-colored leaf fan, looking amused.

"Third."

Seo Ran smirks, raising a third finger.

"The real name of the method you think you stole from the King is not Summoning Wind, True Blood Transformation."

Fwish

Seo Ran flicks his fingers, bending all three at once.

Kugugugugu!

And Yuan Li, about to attack with the leaf fan, suddenly kneels before Seo Ran.

[.…? What…?]

"It's Summoning Wind, Blood Core Coagulation. You thought you stole it from the King and exploited his mercy, but…"

Seo Ran raises his ghostly energy.

Yuan Li, not understanding, looks down at his own knees.

"Well… It seems more credible that the King deliberately passed it to you under the guise of being stolen. To think that you, Yuan Li, was unwittingly a puppet of the King this whole time. How pitiful, Senior Yuan."

[What… is this…?]

Indeed, Yuan Li had been under the illusion that he was exploiting Seo Hweol's goodwill, but in reality, he was unwittingly being played by Seo Hweol all along.

"This Sea Dragon! What are you doing to Lord Bloodwood!"

Makli Clan head, Makli Hwang-cheon, and other clan members rush towards Yuan Li.

Unlike Jinlu Yeon-cheon, they escaped Yuan Li's sudden execution.

But.

Seo Ran looks at them with cold eyes.

"Shut up, you livestock. Do you think you're worthy to speak to me? You would have been eating corpses underground, avoiding the gaze of the Sea Dragon Tribe if they had not ascended... Shut up and follow the commands of your true master, you slaves."

"Uh, ugh…!"

At Seo Ran's command, Makli Hwang-cheon and the Makli Clan cultivators, now unable to speak, block the path of the other traitors.

Seo Ran's gaze reaches a fleeing Eastern Lord and their subordinates.

"I thought the Makli Clan was the gathering place for all the runaway livestock. There were others too. Where are you going? Come here and heed the words of the King's descendant, Seo Ran!"

"Kuuuuuh!"

The lord in black bandages, who had stolen the main cannon of the Nether Crossing Ship from Manli Min-lap and brought it to Yuan Li, now crawls on the ground at Seo Ran's command.

[Oh….Oooohhhhhhh!]

Wuduk, wududuk!

And then.

Yuan Li, suppressed by Seo Ran's command, begins to rise, emitting the power of Nascent Soul.

[Do not... belittle... a Nascent Soul... cultivator...!!!]

He staggers to his feet, resisting Seo Ran's command.

Although still powerful, he seems to be using more than half of his energy to resist Seo Ran.

"Had he not switched to this body, infused with the blood of the Sea Dragon Tribe and mastered True Blood, Core Coagulating Transformation, there would have been no way for me. But now, it's rather convenient."

Seo Ran looks at me and smiles.

"While I can't completely control him due to the fundamental difference in cultivation, I can significantly hinder him. Senior, it's your turn to capture him."

I nod at Seo Ran's smile, now understanding why Seo Hweol was so desperately trying to kill him.

Yuan Li would eventually learn Summoning Wind, True Blood Transformation using Seo Hweol's blood.

In that case, the remaining King's descendant, Seo Ran, would inherently become Yuan Li's weakness.